Has it been over six months since Thomas W Carroll's musing have been ridiculed on this blog? When last we wrote about Tommy, it seemed that someone exposed what Albany Brighter Choice, and for that matter, Tommy are truly about.

So why after six months are we revisiting the all knowing Thomas W Carroll after six months? Well, today Tommy shared his gifts for comedy in a column written in today's New York Post. Entitled, "A Better Recipe To Fix New York Schools," Tommy surely is at his comedic best.

Tommy jokes; "That's because money isn't the answer and because most of the reforms are either too small or have been suffocated by union obstacles (like the 150-page master union contract in New York City)"

I ran across this blog, Albany Citizen One. I read just one post. But boy did she hit the nail on the head in regards to the charter school movement in Albany. So without further ado, sit back, grab a cold one and read on.

Brighter Choice: Good, Bad and Ugly

The building of another charter school on the end of a dead end street in the 12th ward has gotten quite a few folks riled. The riling seems to have worked. And while I’ve picked up the sword in defense of the citizen, many are confused with my criticisms. Many of my fellow citizens have questioned my criticisms of this project as being supportive of the teacher’s union and not in support of “freedom of choice.” This, seemingly, is in clear opposition to my standard criticisms.

Let me clarify for those who haven’t figured it out yet, ACO supports what is in the best interest of the citizens. I’m not against unions, I’m against the abusive “power” of a union. I’m not against charter schools, I’m against the citizens in the community having their taxes raised to insert an unwanted/unneeded charter school in a residential neighborhood. I’m against this eminent ___domain by the charter schools and I’m against bypassing proper procedure to insert said school before the citizens realize what’s happening.

Let me break this down for you…

Here’s the Good with Charter Schools:

Charters provide an alternative learning environment for those who may not be able to afford private school.
In New York, Charters provide a non-unionized work environment (for the most part)
Charters are not saddled with tenured teachers well beyond their prime

Here’s the Bad with Charter Schools:

Charters, though they don’t admit it, don't often accept students limited in learning capability, emotional well-being, physical development, language limitations.
Charters send their underperforming students back to public schools.

Now, here’s what’s wrong with Albany Charter Schools….errr…Brighter Choice.

Brighter Choice is a shining example of great capitalistic strategy…a strategy which has cost the citizens of Albany a whole lot of money while earning the BC elite a whole lot of money. Brighter Choice was begun by Thomas Carroll. Seems that Tom Carroll along with Brian Backstrom, Albany Prep's chairman, were president and vice-president of Change-NY, a conservative think tank that helped push Mario Cuomo out of office and brought us George Pataki. (Incidently, while they billed themselves as a taxpayer advocacy group they seem to have no problem going after government money when it is for their own projects. Like “Race to the Top.” )

Ya see, Carroll got a few of his guys together from the back chambers of the Capital building, Pataki’s boys…Brian Backstrom, Peter Murphy, John Carl…you know the folks. And they figured out how to make some bucks off the citizens and block criticism of the abuse by endearing themselves to the minority community with a brilliant public relations strategy.

They created a “choice” mantra and reached out their hands to the public schools which, and the ASD must admit this, could have been providing a better product. That “choice” opened up an educational competition which, hopefully, increased the quality of education in Albany. With their first success, Brighter Choice filled their boards (Brighter Choice Schools, Brighter Choice Foundation and all their Schools) with political strategists (lobbyists), public relation firms (lobbyists) Budget Department Insiders (Executive/Legislative…lobbyists), Investors (political donors), financial insiders (political donors), and they dotted those boards with “community insiders.” You know, the type that BC (Brighter Choice) might think could convert an urban distrust of “the man.” Victor Collier, Ken Wilcox, Kelly Kimbrough. (I’ve mapped out the BC Board Web here for ya.)

Genious…pure genious.

(Note: Even though BC has checked the box stating they don’t lobby on their 990, they do have a contract in place ($37500 per filing) and they have several lobbyists (including Bender) on payroll…and several, I’m sure, that aren’t recorded anywhere.)

Like anything else that is Albany, this plot enriched the construction companies, greased the palms of the politicians, abused the very system put in place to prevent overdevelopment and it got out of control…it lost the balance between its feigned concern for the community and its true mission, financial enrichment. Of course, those BC financial wizards would have had to anticipate the “breaking point” in this economic climate…combined with the growing frustrations of the citizens.

While I’ve showcased Juan Gonzales’ article illustrating how Brighter Choice is benefiting from the New Market Tax Credit and several other credit schemes. I’ve looked beyond the scheme for money grubbing financial institutes nearly doubling their money within seven years of keeping a struggling Charter alive.

Now, one major concern I’ve encountered when examining the infrastructure of Carroll’s brainchild, are the Boards. The Boards are ingeniously constructed to not only benefit BC, but to benefit each board member. (I've put all board members into a spreadsheet including their daytime jobs...you figure out the conflicts of interest...oh, and shoot me an email and I'll point that out in the speadsheet!) Contracts have gone to board member's companies without competing bids and they even voted to have BC enter into contracts with their own companies.

As you’ve probably guessed, not only do the contract winning companies benefit in this board relationship, so does BC. Ya see, several of those no-bid insider contracts are to School Performance, Inc. This company is charged with reporting “unbiased” data regarding the Charter students academic performance. Slight conflict…me thinks. Here’s a view inside the Charters offered from NYSUT and integrated with ACO (yeah, I know there’s motivation but it’s all backed up):

Charter schools in Albany’s Brighter Choice network have awarded contracts to a non-profit testing and data company operated by Albany charter board members. Four contracts obtained so far through the Freedom of Information Law indicate all four contracts were approved without competitive bidding. Contracts between Albany charters and the company, School Performance Inc., show that the company oversees the reporting of test score data which charters then submit to authorizers for their renewals. Other board members at Brighter Choice charter schools have benefited from contracts to provide software, advertising and public relations services for charter schools in the Brighter Choice network.

School Performance (SPNY) is a non-profit charter consulting, data and testing company providing standardized test support and other services to Albany charters. The initial board of directors of included, Thomas Carroll, Chris Bender, Bill Phillips and Peter Murphy (all Charterbots). As of June 2008, directors of School Performance, Inc. included other board members at Albany charter schools, including Brian Backstrom, vice president of the Foundation for Education Reform and Accountability and chair of the Albany Preparatory Charter School; John Carl, trustee of the Albany Preparatory Charter School; and SPNY’s president, Paul Thallner, trustee of the Albany Community Charter School.

Here’s another, at a meeting of the Henry Johnson Charter School on January 25, 2008, former SPNY founding director Peter Murphy moved to have the school enter into a $10,000 contract with SPNY. Board minutes from that meeting do not reflect any discussion of his past role in creating the company or any potential conflict of interest.

And another, on Sept. 26, 2007, the Albany Preparatory Charter School entered into a contract with SPNY based on a discussion led by board trustee John Carl and seconded by Brian Backstrom. There is no record of either Carl or Backstrom recusing themselves from the vote to avoid a conflict of interest. Both voted on the motion, even though School Performance’s IRS Forms for 2007-08 show both Backstrom and Carl served on SPNY’s board of directors that year.

As if this little bit of self-dealing weren’t enough of a concern to me, I had to look at BC’s 990 (IRS Information Form). (This data hasn’t been updated since 2008 online so I’m working with old data here). Seems that BC had, in 2008, 38 million in assets, and it felt that M. Christian Bender deserved over $192,000 in salary and, get this, over $18K for housing?

Go figure, is this nonprofit really worthy of a 501(C)(3) status? Perhaps the IRS exempt organizations department should take a look at this situation and that of School Performance Inc. seems they are doing pretty well on the citizen’s dime for nonprofits. (Oh yeah, Thallner makes over $125K…makes ya sick, huh?) Interesting also, looking at those who hold the notes on BC, the New Market Development Corp…where, I understand, Carroll is on the board, Broadway 915 (don’t look too closely…this is Omni) Oh shoot, I’ll just send this over to the IRS. Nice to have a strategic network in place!

Now, if there weren’t enough concerns with accurate academic reporting after we find out the “reporters” (School Performance) have ulterior motives, there remain more concerns. You remember me telling you how the Charters are, for the most part, grossly under-enrolled with SUNY making annual adjustments to better help them meet their goals. While the enrollment gaps are enough to call into question test-score comparisons between charter and regular public schools, charters and district schools also experience a “churn rate” that affects who gets taught and who gets tested.

Nearly 150 students have returned from Albany charter schools to the city school district during this current school year.The district began compiling data on students who returned in late November. The chart below, in which parents explain to the district why their students are returning from Albany charters, offers a glimpse at the turnover, or “churn.”

Of the 146 students who have transferred to Albany city schools from charter schools as of Febuary 1, 2010, the numbers include 48 from the New Covenant CS; 22 from Brighter Choice’s Achievement Academy CS and 16 from Brighter Choice’s Albany Preparatory CS. The city school district also reports 14 students each have left the Brighter Choice’s Green Tech and Brighter Choice’s KIPP Academy charter schools this year.

In 2008-09, 191 students transferred to district schools from Albany charter schools, about 9 percent of the city’s total charter enrollment. The largest number, 72, returned to city schools from the New Covenant Charter School that year, but 27 left Brighter Choice’s Achievement Academy; 24 returned from the Brighter Choice Girl’s and Boy’s charters; and 23 were discharged from the Albany Preparatory Charter School.

Albany and its charter schools illustrate the inherent unreliability of comparing student test results, given the lack of comparable student bodies and the “churn” or mobility rate among schools. For both the regular public schools and charters, how is it possible to determine whether the students being taught are the same ones being tested?

Exemplifying the problem of “churn” – and the unreliability of test score comparisons – is the KIPP Tech Valley Charter School, which is now up for renewal from the SUNY Charter School Institute. In 2009, KIPP Tech Valley Charter School graduated its first cohort of students to go through all four years of its program. The school reports that 100 percent of its eighth-graders scored level 3 or Level 4 on the 2009 state math test, and 92 percent met state standards on the ELA test.86 However, KIPP’s Class of 2009 also had a four-year graduation rate of 31 percent District records show only 27 of the 88 students who attended the charter school as fifth-graders in KIPP’s first year completed the charter program four years later. Fifty-five students left the school, and six remain enrolled in 2009-10 after being held back. In 2008-09 alone, 14 KIPP students returned – or were removed – to Albany city schools

Even more discouraging is the enrollment of the special education students….of course, I’m sure School Performance will find a “work around.” Despite a random lottery, the Brighter Choice Boy’s and Brighter Choice Girl’s charter schools in Albany enroll a combined 13 students with disabilities out of a total enrollment of 443, for a special education rate of 2.9 percent.67 Albany’s special education population is 14.6 percent.68 Brighter Choice Charter Schools were recently found not in compliance with their charter for inquiring about students’ special education needs on their application form. The State Education Department report instructed Brighter Choice, “As the child’s special education status is not relevant to admissions, please provide an updated lottery application.”

The New York State Charter School Association, the management and lobbying arm for many operators, went to court to block financial and operational audits by the Office of the State Comptroller. Brighter Choice appealed to the Court of Appeals two rulings forcing it to disclose the names and salaries of its teachers under the Freedom of Information Law, information that is a required part of the public record for regular public schools to protect against nepotism and fraud. The for-profit National Heritage Academies, with which the number two at BCF, Maureen Blum seems to be rather well acquainted, is seeking to block teacher efforts to unionize as public employees. NHA’s legal effort – in the face of 100 percent of teachers signing cards seeking union representation in March 2009 -- suggests charter management wants to avoid the natural checks-and-balances that occur when teachers have a voice through a union. Now see, this is a good place for a union.

You remember me mentioning Maureen Blum right above? She’s a staffer at Brighter Choice Foundation. Ever heard of her? I hadn’t either even though her apartment is directly across the street from me. She is, get this, the Brighter Choice Community Outreach Director. Now, I’ve been a Community Outreach Director…what might you think one of these might do? Right! (You musta gone to public school.) They reach out to the community. Well, this Albany based school has a Community Outreach Director who lives in Washington D.C. but stays in a BC owned apartment when she’s here….lobbying. Yup, that’s right, she’s a lobbyist…living in D.C.

While I’m outraged at the violation of the rights of those citizens down on Bradford Street being targeted for yet another Charter School on their serene dead end street, I’m even more outraged at outright unlawful activity which has become acceptable within this nonprofit system. This continued abuse is the reason this system has thrived…it is not because of academic achievement, it’s not because there aren’t enough slots for all of our students to have a “choice,” it’s because everyone is getting rich and living the high life on the backs of Albany citizens!

Tonight we discuss an exercise from a recent professional development. A question was asked to the teachers, "what do we want our students to be able to be and able to do by the time they leave the school at the end of fifth grade?"

Simple enough question. But without simple answers. I mean the responses were simple, but in the light of ÜberLehrer Sydney Morris, Evan Stone, and the sycophantic anonymous teacher who left a comment earlier tonight, I felt I had get this off my chest.

So to those wonderful third year teachers, Whitney (Why Did My Parents Give Me a Girl's Name) Tilson, Thomas W Carroll, Joel Klein, Mike Bloomberg, Eli Broad, and all of the rest of the EDiots here are the responses. But, please think how these answers will fit into a bar graph or spread sheet. So what do we want from our fifth graders by the end of June?

• Develop higher order thinking skills
• Ability to expand their world view
• Resolve conflicts
• Eating healthy and exercising
• Independent thinking
• Higher self esteem
• Choosing friends carefully
• Strong sense of self
• Importance/Principles of art
• Self advocates
• Role models
• Agents of change
• Dreams
• Goals
• Citizen of community
• Thirst for learning
• Social and global issues
• Learning not rammed down their throats
• Affective issues
• Problem solving
• Writing/reading fluently

So if you really boil it down, out of the twenty one listed, two, yes two have anything to do with academics, and one if you look at problem solving as outside the realm of academics. So what does it mean?

It means that not one teacher said anything about passing the state mandated standardized tests. That the tests, and testing are bullocks. That what teachers truly, really do can not be measured, can not be found on a spread sheet. That we, the PROFESSIONALS see more of what our students should and can be and we fight for that each and every day.

But it is all about to go flushing down the proverbial toilet.We are turning our students into non-entities with all this testing, teaching to the test, pressure to do well on a test garbage. And don't think this will trickle down, to the teachers. Go ahead EDiots, tie tenure, salaries, merit pay to scores and you will have teachers who only see students as some file number that is standing in the way of a job or extra pay. When that starts happening you will have teachers that will cheat, teachers that not work cooperatively with one another, and teachers that won't care about anyone other than themselves.

Teaching is more, so much more about test scores. This is especially true in the South Bronx and I am sure other parts of the city. Yet the EDiots don't see this. There answers, their solutions are a quick fix on what is happening, an easy answer that sounds good in ten second bites.

Yet not one of these EDiots has ever actually spent time in a classroom, except the great Dougie Lemov (but he doesn't count for he was in private school). Why won't these EDiots ever answer a question about their "teaching" background? Because there is none and if they answer they never taught then the emperor will be butt naked and the whole world will laugh at was has been revealed. HA! HA!

SBSB has just learned that submissions of applications for Race To The Top will take a reality show format. Yes, you read that right. Borrowing a mostly from The Bachelor and a bit from Rock of Love. The show will be entitled, "The Secretary" in which Arne Duncan will choose one lucky state, represented by someone of the choosing of each state's choosing competes against 49 (excluding Tennessee and Delaware) for the heart of Arne Duncan.

As in The Bachelor each contestant will spend time on a "date" with Arne Duncan, trying to wow him into releasing money for that contestant's state. Those who stay on are given a red rose to keep and to cherish. Borrowing from Rock of Love, each contestant will degrade themselves privately to the lowest possible denominator to better their chance of getting the red rose and ultimately winning the RTtT money.

Representing New York State will be RTtT expert and charter school advocate and big shot, Thomas W Carroll. In fact we here at SBSB got a special preview, albeit in transcript form. Unfortunately the transcripts have been edited to leave out the naughty bits and words. This was not a decision made by FOX, but none without authorization by transcriber Irma Rabinowitz, 88, of Boca Raton FL. So without further ado, a sneak peak of FOX's The Secretary.

The scene: Thomas W Carroll and Arne Duncan are walking alone on a beach on Chesapeake Bay. They are holding hands.

Carroll: I feel like the luckiest guy in the world tonight. Just you and me on this moonlit beach, each with champagne floozies. Arne: I know how you feel. Carroll: I feel a special oneness with you Arne, a oneness that can't be explained. It's a onenesss I want to share with the world. Arne: SoonThomas, soon. One day the world want look down their noses at the special bonf we are forming. Caroll (resting his head on Arne's shoulder): I so look forward to that day. By the way Arne, have you looked at New York State's application for RTtT? Arne: Yes I have Thomas. But you know there is more that must be done. Tomorrow night you are in the degradation round, alone with me. I hope you have given it some thought. Carroll: I have, I have.

After this, the transcript has the "confessional" part of the show in which each talk candidly to the camera.

Arne Duncan: I am having a tough time with Thomas. Yes he shows me a great deal of affection on the beach, but is he really willing to go all out in the degradation round? If he wows me I don't see any reason why he wouldn't get a red rose. Carroll: Words can't describe what I felt for Arne walking alone with him on that beach. I know he has the same feelings for me that I do, but wait until the degradation round. I am bringing Bosco, a leaf blower, motor oil, and an menorah. No one, and certainly not that bitch from New Jersey can out degrade themselves more than I can myself!

The degradation round is a round in which the applicant is left alone in Arne Duncan's office for 10 minutes. The lower you sink in the quest for money, the better the chances of getting the red rose and ultimately winning the second round of RTtT. Cameras are not allowed in for the degradation round.

Degradation round confessional:

Arne Duncan(sitting at his desk in bathrobe): I was quite impressed. The way Thomas used the Bosco! Never have I seen it used that way before. The menorah and the leaf blower added quite a twist, but neither would have worked without the motor oil. I am glad Thomas chose a 5 weight oil. Thomas is getting a red rose for sure!!!
Thomas W Carroll(on floor covered in Bosco and motor oil, only wearing his Hanes briefs): Editors note: Indistinguishable, making garbling noises, tounge hanging out of his mouth. Smiles when told he is getting a red rose.

Thomas W Carroll is at it again. Imparting what he thinks is knowledge upon all he looks down his gilded nose at. Today, the world was blessed with yet more of his know nothingness in the New York Post. Let's have a looksee inside the convoluted mind of Tommy.

To get it together to win the funds on offer in Round 2, lawmakers will have to stop buying the teachers-union line.

Please explain the teacher union line. You know what Tommy, I have funny feeling that your daddy was a union member and that you were able to attain whatever stature you think you have or deserve due to your daddy being in a union.

the unions were wrong when they told legislators that they could make a minor tweak here or there, without raising the charter-school cap or addressing New York's "data firewall," which prevents schools from using student data in evaluating teachers.

No, the unions are not wrong. The unions are right. Do you really understand anything about how skewed tests can be? There are too many outside influences with a student to ever accurately gauge their knowledge using a test. The whole entire child is what we need to look at. Not what he or she can do on a test. When I took my state teaching tests I was anxious, imagine what a 9 year old must be going through.

But Tommy remember my analogy about you and Mrs Carroll? You should really give it some thought.

Their mistaken advice cost the state of New York $700 million.

And the $200K for office furniture had nothing to do with it right? In fact I am of the mind that the fix was in from he beginning. This blog should also be required reading.

So what is it Tommy that you think Albany needs to do?

1) Bring the charter cap way up -- from the current limit of 200 schools to 460 schools or more. And, again, those "poison pills" are deal-killers -- they'd cost us points in the competition. No "regional caps" on charter enrollment, and no limits on locating charters in city Department of Education space.

Why don't we just put the same resources that the charters are getting into the public schools? And why, please why, do charters did the benefactor of the DOE? If as you and your ilk say that schools should be run as if they were a business, then by golly they should be treated as if they are a business and find a place for their business on their own. I want to open a deli to compete against a entrenched neighborhood deli, should the government help me?

2) Address the one fair point critics raised: New York charters need to address better special education and English-language-learner populations. But the answer here is to let charters give such students preference in admission lotteries -- not to impose quotas, as the unions proposed.

Where have unions asked to impose quotas? To the best of my knowledge they are asking for resources in charters for students with special needs and to have a representative percentage that same as public schools.

To make this practical, charters must also be allowed to to contract with local Boards of Cooperative Educational Services and to set up cooperative arrangements among charter schools to educate difficult-to-serve students.

This is called passing the buck.

3) End that "data firewall": This expires at the end of June, anyway -- but we need it gone by June 1, the deadline for Round 2 applications.

See what I have written above.

4) Strengthen and pass the Regents proposal for requiring all teacher evaluations to consider student data in the future.

Again, see above.

5) ) Give the Regents direct authority to close bad schools and to replace dysfunctional school boards.

You just contradict yourself. You go from SUNY Board of Trustees should make decisions now to the Regents. Make up your mind. Should they also have ability to close profit minded charter organizations that steer special needs students away? ***COUGH*** Brighter Choice ***COUGH***

There are a few other issues, too technical to discuss here, but the above is the core of it.

Translation: There are a few other issues, but I am smarter than everyone else, so why waste my time on peons?

This is what I want to know Tommy, and all the readers of SBSB. Have you ever taught? What are your educational qualifications?

I am surprised not one blog, most of all Gotham Schools has yet to mention this. The fact that the Post did I find shocking. In fact I didn't know about this until I spoke to a colleague just a few minutes ago. But I do have a big s**t eating grin now. I wonder if RtTT poster boys Whitney (I-684 Rest Area) Tilson and Thomas W. Carroll will even bother mentioning it.

But it seems that the Children First mentality is alive and well still amongst the EDiots. It seems that in their whoring, er, I meant application to the feds for $$$, someone, somehow slipped that $200k will be spent on office furniture. Yes!!! Read on:

The bizarre equipment wish list was so outrageous that three of the five judges who reviewed New York's "Race to the Top" application blasted it in written comments -- focusing on 24 "executive chairs" that cost $550 each, or more than $13,000 total.

WTF is an executive chair? And why does it cost $550? The crack office supply team here at SBSB did some research and found the Boss Lumbar Support Executive Chair at overstock.com for only $84.99. Plus tax and shipping. Still a great bargain. Unfortunately children don't need this.

To paraphrase Captain Renault, I am shocked to find out charter schools select only the brightest and turn away low achievers.

In today's Albany Times-Union it turns out that The Albany Preparatory Charter School was "milking its books." They were denying admission to wait listed learning disabled students. According to the Times-Union, "Some parents of students who did not perform well on a reading test were counseled that the school was 'not a good fit' or would have their applications denied, according to a scathing new report by the State University of New York's Charter Schools Institute."

What is ironic is The Albany Preparatory Charter School is run by Brighter Choice. Sound familiar? It should to readers of this blog. Brighter Choice was founded by current chairman Thomas W Carroll. Yes, the same Thomas W Carroll whose bragged to me in a tweet that he "opened 11 charter schools," in response to an article he had written in which I tweeted that he is demented.

I think he founded 11 illusory charter schools. All claims by Brighter Choice should be re-examined with a fine tooth comb. Right here Brighter Choice brags how it has the top ranked schools in Albany.

The website for Albany Preparatory Charter School claims; The school is open to all age-eligible students – there are no entrance exams, no eligibility requirements, no income qualifications. Yeah, sure.

One more thing came to light as the crack investigative team here at SBSB held Albany Prep under the magnifying glass. Seems that Thomas W Carroll and Brian Backstrom, Albany Prep's chairman, were president and vice-president of Change-NY, a conservative think tank that helped push Mario Cuomo out of office and brought us George Pataki. They billed themselves as a taxpayer advocacy group. But Carroll and Backstrom seem to have no problem going after government money when it is for their own projects. Like Race to the Top.

I believe this is just the tip of the iceberg as far as malfeasance in charter schools goes. Unfortunately the Albany Times-Union has more guts combined than any of the three papers here in NYC.

Thomas W Carroll, the titular head of Albany school reform and his ilk are the type that wish to judge teachers by students test scores. But what if we are to judge Thomas W Carroll? How about in how he satisfies the women in his life? Would it mean that he is a poor lover? Let's examine this hypothetically.

With Mrs Carroll, Tommy is very attentive. However, Mrs Carroll sometimes needs a little help. Now this is no knock against Tommy. It's just the way Mrs Carroll is. She has been to medical doctors, took a three hour course with Dr Ruth, in fact both of them even bought some Nina Hartley how to videos.

But to feel fully satisfied sometimes Mrs Carroll needs to use a Silver Bullet, or even the "ears" of a rabbit.  Maybe an adult video with midgets. Now mind you this is no reflection on Tommy. Or just sometime Mrs Carroll will close her eyes, wait for it to be over and finish it herself later. It is just that Mrs Carroll needs certain stimuli to be satisfied during the act of love. It is no reflection on Tommy's physical attributes nor his abilities. It's just the way it is.

No let's pretend Tommy has a kept woman. A concubine if you will. This woman does not need any of the outside stimuli that Mrs Carroll does. Tommy does the same thing, has the same physical attributes, but she is satisfied ever so easy, and ever so quickly. Tommy hasn't done anything differently.

Now we don't know either the concubine's nor Mrs Carroll's attitudes for the act of love. Nothing is correct or incorrect. But their two different people with two different backgrounds, but with the same man. But should Tommy be penalized for that he is unable to satisfy Mrs Carroll? Of course not.

And this goes for children and standardized testing. We don't know what goes on, or went on with a student once they leave the building. We can't be at their homes every single day making sure they are not being abused, eating right, doing homework, enriching their vocabulary, etc... We can help them in the classroom, do whatever we can to improve them, but we can't judge students, and teachers by some silly test.

If we start judging teachers by how the results of their students tests, then shouldn't Tommy be judged on how he satisfies Mrs Carroll?

Where does the Brighter Choice Foundation, brainchild of Uber Teacher Thomas W Carroll, get its funding from? Everybody's favorite mom and pop superstore, WalMart

The January 10, 2010 edition of the Albany Times-Union did some digging and found that Walton Family Foundation, the heirs of WalMart, is the largest contributor to Brighter Choice Foundation. The foundations has doled out $15 million for charter school construction alone in Albany and more than $1 million a year for several years for operations of the growing Brighter Choice charter schools.
The Times-Union also reports that, money flowing into the region from various billionaires is underwriting a fledgling and publicly-financed charter school cluster in Albany that is among the most promising in the industry. It is also troubling teachers union officials who wonder why the right is sponsoring schools in urban Albany.

But why is the Right so interested in Albany. Surely they can't be lobbying or making campaign contributions. Surely Governor Paterson believes in his own heart of hearts in charter schools. Or not?

According to the Times-Union, the only Walton money coming into New York political campaigns is from Christy R. Walton and it's been going to Paterson. She has given only to the governor's election campaign -- not when he was a senator or lieutenant governor candidate. Walton has made three contributions totaling $55,900 to the governor's election effort, according to most recent state disclosures.

So confused I am. I could swear that Tommy whined about the UFT lobbying efforts and money it throws around Albany. But who else does Thomas J Carroll whore himself out to?

Seems that Tommy and his Education Reform and Accountability think tank are whores to the Gilder Foundation, which has given Brighter Choice millions of dollars over the years. Have you no shame Tommy?

No, Tommy hasn't any shame/ To do business with WalMart a company that refuses to let its employees unionize, a company that makes its workers pay 35% to health care costs, a company that refuses to pay overtimes, a company known to lock its employees in a store. This is the type of company that Thomas W Carroll does business with? For shame.

Now check this out. In the Times Union story, Assemblyman John McEneny, D-Albany, who is wary of charter schools, said he thinks the Brighter Choice curriculum mirrors the profit-motive culture of the Wall Street backers and Wal-Mart. As an example, he said children earn payments toward field trips for their achievements. Others are left home during the class trips if they haven't earned the payments.

Leaving kids home from a field trip that is supposed to be educational because they don't have enough "charter bucks?" That is not right. It is just plain wrong. The only reason a student is kept not from going on a field trip is if there is a safety concern. Tommy, I am so upset!!

Got this reply to the blog posting with the Van Halen video a few hours ago. I can't prove it, but I think it is my new bestest friend in thew whole wide world, Twitter Troll, Thomas W Carroll. If it isn't him then I am sure it is one of his lackeys. Either way neither, I am sure, has ever taught in a classroom.

Interrupting the lovefest...

Teaching is no longer respected because that's what teachers have done to their profession. No differential pay, no merit pay, lifetime tenure, fight evaluation at every turn, be the leading lobbyists in the state to assure that all decisions in education are based on the interests of the vast majority of mediocre teachers, or worse, the interests of the union itself.

Teachers, via their unions, have absolutely insisted that they be treated like interchangeable parts in some 19th century assembly line of education.

Congrats, you're getting exactly the amount of respect as you deserve and have worked so hard for.

God this is so easy to just pick apart.

Interrupting the lovefest...

No lovefest there. Just a small mutual admiration society that you are not a part of. I am sure if we were giving Tommy accolades, Tommy would have been preening with it tucked under like that guy did in Silence of the Lambs.

No differential pay

Do you mean that there should be no differential pay, or that teachers do not have differential pay? I am somewhat confused.

no merit pay

This I know what you mean. How do we properly judge who gets merit pay or who doesn't? Test scores? What happens if one teacher has a class in which a child who witnessed her mommy being beaten the night before an exam? Or another child that watched mommy turn tricks to score some crack or heroin? Or a little girl's favorite uncle decided to defile her? Or just that no one was home and the kid was hanging out at Pathmark on 204th St all night panhandling? I mean I could go on and on about the infinite scenarios that could affect a child's score on a test.

But what of the gym teacher? Art teacher? Music teacher? Other school based pedagogues that are not directly involved in a students score on a exam? How do we give these teachers merit pay?

Does this mean a dentist in Scarsdale is better than a dentist in the South Bronx because the Scarsdale dentist's patients are able to afford better dental care than the patients in the South Bronx?

lifetime tenure

Yep we have lifetime tenure. Good thing we do. Know how many teachers would be terminated for having a Coke in their hand? Watch WCBS News at 11 PM Monday night, you'll see what I am talking about.

fight evaluation at every turn

We do? Not that I know of. What kind of evaluation should there be. Your answer must not include these two words. Test and scores.


be the leading lobbyists in the state

Tommy, you were part of Change-NY. You sued SUNY-Albany because you did not agree with NYPIRG. You were an aide to one of the biggest crooks ever in Albany, Joe Bruno. You were an aide to Governor Pataki as well who was in bed with SEIU. Pot meet kettle.

interests of the vast majority of mediocre teachers

Define mediocre teacher? A boring teacher? It is already been established in case law that being boring is not incompetence.


Congrats, you're getting exactly the amount of respect as you deserve and have worked so hard for.

No Tommy we are not getting respect because of people like you who think they know better than people like us. You people and your shrillness and refusal to delve into the real reasons of what matters to a child's education and instead just look for people to blame, that is why teachers are losing respect.

Oh and one more thing. Did you like the Van Halen video? I like that song. But I am more of a Van Hagar fan myself.

Coolest thing ever happened this evening. I got tweeted by New York Foundation for Education Reform & Accountability Oberstgruppenführer Thomas W. Carroll. Boys and girls I will let you in on a little secret. Tommy is a big shot. Well, in his own mind.

Tommy had his panties in a bunch because I tweeted to one of his Stoßtruppen that he is demented in regards to an article he wrote about New York's failure to properly apply to RtTT funds. Read the article. See how out of touch he is.

But you ask, Tommy must be an extraordinary educator to posit such a stance. We here at SBSB did some digging and found Tommy's qualifications to comment on education.

Thomas W. Carroll is president of the Foundation for Education Reform & Accountability and chairman of the Brighter Choice Foundation in Albany, New York.

Through the Brighter Choice Foundation, Mr. Carroll has created a network of high-performing public charter schools in New York’s state capital, primarily serving economically disadvantaged African American and Latino students. Schools backed by Brighter Choice were ranked #1 of all public schools in Albany in math in every grade and #1 in English language arts in the highest elementary- and middle-school grades. In fall 2009, charter schools in Albany enrolled more than 25 percent of all public school students in Albany.

Mr. Carroll previously held research, fiscal, and administrative positions in New York with the Governor’s office, the State Legislature, and the State Division of the Budget.

Mr. Carroll earned a B.A. from the University at Albany, State University of New York and an M.A. from Albany’s Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy.

Impressive. Very much. Unfortunately, we here at SBSB were unable to locate any teaching experience in his wonderful CV. But not to worry. We are still looking.

But, we here archived his tweets and for the first time in recorded history share them here.

Look at the rantings of Tommy. First thing he says, "I FOUNDED 11 PUBLIC SCHOOLS!" Hey impressive. I coached two teams to consecutive championships in my local Little League. So I can take over for Jerry Manuel and manage the Mets now? I mean the Mets, nor Jerry Manuel have not won any championships, so obviously I am more qualified. Oh, a side note. I do hate the Mets with a passion. I am an avid Yankees fan.

So I asked him what his qualifications are, "have you ever been in a classroom as a teacher?" A simple question that demands a simple answer. Either yes or no. He dodged, dived, ducked, and dodged that question.

So he asks again what views I disagreed with, and not knowing me very well asked me not to be bashful. I told him and asked again, "have you ever been in a classroom as a teacher?" Again the same obfuscation.

Lastly he asks about my last blog posting in which I questioned the constitutionality of RtTT, NCLB, and federal involvement in local education matters by retorting that I should, "turn the money down." As if I made that decision. Even if I could, I would not prostitute myself to do so.

But what amazes me is that Tommy was too afraid to answer my question and might never now. For some inexplicable reason he unfollowed me on Twitter. I am hurt. I shall sob myself to sleep. But seriously Tommy, what are you afraid of? Being exposed for the EDiot you are?

Come back Tommy, I hardly knew thee.